Tiramisu Bundt with Orange Mascarpone Glaze

Last year at about this time, my dear sister brought to my attention that November 15th is National Bundt Cake Day. A blogger known as The Food Librarian celebrates the occasion with a month-long Bundt-baking spree and encourages others to share photos and stories of the Bundts they bake. Dear Sis and I had planned to do this together, but since she was not around to bake a Bundt yesterday (she was in Italy, poor thing), I decided to go ahead on my own. Tiramisu being one of my favorite things ever, I wanted to try to capture the essence of it in a Bundt. For a first attempt of a new recipe, it was pretty darned not too bad. This recipe will be adjusted during future bakings, but here’s what happened in my kitchen yesterday.

In a small bowl, mix coffee liqueur and 1 package of ladyfingers until soaked and squishy and vaguely reminiscent of 80 proof cat food. Set aside.

Do not actually let a cat eat this

Remove 1/4 cup of mascarpone from tub and set aside. In a medium/large (your “I’m making a cake” bowl, you know the one) bowl, blend the remaining mascarpone, butter, and sugar until grainy.

Probably don’t want to let a cat eat this, either

Add eggs and vanilla extract, blend until still grainy but slightly darker and more liquidy. Stir in baking powder. Retrieve ladyfinger/coffee liqueur mixture and add to bowl. Stir and ignore nagging voice in back of head that insists nothing that looks like this can possibly end in anything palatable.

This can end well…

Add flour. Stir until you realize stirring is not going to make the batter as smooth as you want it to be. Break out electric mixer. 1-2 minutes on low. Smooth batter is happy batter. Yay.

Happy Batter!

Grease Bundt pan and spread batter semi-sorta evenly. Open second package of ladyfingers and arrange them on top of batter (see photo). Have extras. Note to self: ladyfingers + bacon + multivitamin = breakfast. But that’s the future and this is the now and the now is all about 1/4 cup of orange liqueur being drizzled over that layer of ladyfingers. Do that.

Live in The Now

Place pan in nicely preheated 325 degree oven. Leave there for 45 minutes. If oven is unevenly-heating piece of crap, rotate pan halfway through baking time to keep ladyfingers on back of cake from browning twice as much as those on front of cake.

Evenly browned despite best efforts of total crap oven

Remove cake from oven and let cool in pan for about 10 minutes. Flip onto anxiously awaiting cake plate and allow to cool for another 10 minutes or so while glaze is being made.

Cake plates live for little moments like these

FOR GLAZE: Remember where you set aside that 1/4 cup of mascarpone an hour ago, and retrieve it. Put it in a small bowl, add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add remaining 1/4 cup of orange liqueur and stir until blended and glazy. Attempt to drizzle over top of cake. Notice that this particular glaze is not inclined to drizzle. Place glaze in a ring atop cake and sort of nudge down sides. Sprinkle chopped chocolate bits on top of glaze.

Glazed & sprinkled

Admire cake. Resist urge to play “I’m a grownup and can do whatever I want” card, and have real food for dinner instead of cake. We recommend lightly sautéed ice cubes garnished with fresh lemon and a baby carrot.

Eat cake. Make Notes for Next Time.

NOTES FOR NEXT TIME

1 – Ladyfinger/coffee liqueur mixture wants for more cake batter. Since original recipe was cut in half this time, try with full amount next time. Worst case scenario: there is more cake. Booeffinhoo.

2 – Glaze should be decidedly more glazy. Tragically, this will most likely be achieved by reducing the amount of alcohol. Possible solution; serve shots with cake.

3 – Layer of ladyfingers on bottom of cake looked and tasted really cool. Try to make layer more concentrated next time. Ladyfingers are squishy, more can fit in pan. Have toast for breakfast.